Some Enchanted Knight
by CatwomanNY
Summary: Bonnie's daughter comes to work for the new FLAG with Mike, Sarah, Billy, and Zoe. Rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

_My Dear Readers,_

_I have to confess something, put it out into cyberspace, I, am a closet "Knight Rider" fan. I loved the original. William Daniels' KITT was just THE car I grew up wanting. When the new version with Justin Bruenig and Val Kilmer's KITT (damn, what a voice) came out, I had to watch. After this past episode where Sarah, Mike, Zoë, and Billy decide to reinstitute FLAG, something just planted in my brain and wouldn't let go. Here is what popped out._

_As always, I own nothing except the original character, Dr. Rebecca "Cat" Barstow (which was not named after me…she will be explained in later chapters), but I am willing to arrange play dates for her with just a simple e-mail. Reviews are welcome and I hope you enjoy!_

_Cat_

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It was a cold winter day in Massachusetts. The start of the spring semester always was at MIT. Cat looked out over the sea of new engineering students filing into her lecture hall. Each year, she noticed how those faces kept getting younger and after ten years, those faces started blurring together. Her courses were always well attended given her notoriety on the subject and the fact that she was only five years older than most of her graduate students. It didn't hurt that the subject was something fun and different, 'The Car of the Future: Designing an Accident-Free World'. Yet, the class didn't interest her anymore. It was getting old.

Sarah Graiman sat in her office in the newly repaired SSC and stared at the paperwork, the sound of her lawyer's voice droning on in her ear. Who knew that restarting FLAG, the Foundation for Law And Government, would be so difficult? All she wanted to do was continue her father's work, not try to establish world peace. Though, according to the lawyer, establishing world peace might be easier considering FLAG couldn't be reestablished without the signature and approval of one important person.

The phone Cat's office was ringing as she entered after class and she ran to grab it. "This is Cat."

"Oh, um," Sarah stammered, "I'm sorry. I'm looking for Dr. Rebecca Barstow."

"You've reached her. What can I do you for?" She flopped down in her desk chair and began going through her phone messages. She would have to talk to the department secretary about her penmanship.

"My name is Sarah Graiman."

"You're Charles Graiman's daughter." Suddenly the scribbled messages were forgotten. "I'm so sorry for your loss. Your father was a great man."

"Thank you. I'm actually trying to continue his work by reestablishing the Foundation for Law and Government."

"Ah, good ole FLAG. Good for you. I'm guessing you're calling because you need me to approve this massive undertaking."

"Yes, Ma'am, I am. I can assure you that I will be respectful of the organization and the groundwork that was laid by Wilton Knight,"

"Ms. Graiman, I'm sure you will. If you are anything like your father, you are very grounded, forward thinking, and intelligent. I have no concerns over that. I just have one question. Have your assembled KITT?"

"Um," how did this woman know about classified information and did she really want to give that sort of thing away over the phone?

Cat laughed. "I get it. Unsecured phone line and all. You need me to sign the papers anyway, so why don't I just fly to wherever you are and you can decide then if you want to tell me?"

"Yeah, OK, sure." Sarah was beginning to feel as though her head was spinning, but she gave the other woman the location and her contact numbers. "Just let me know your flight information and I'll send someone to pick you up."

"Great! I'm dying to get out of these freezing temperatures."

Dr. Rebecca Barstow was nothing like how Sarah had expected when she saw her get off the plane the next day. A woman with two Ph.D.s, one in mechanical engineering and one in computer science, and a tenured professor at MIT, Sarah expected someone who was a little more of a nerd than the beautiful brunette who walked off the private jet. Though, she thought to herself, she shouldn't have been too surprised given that she was the daughter of Bonnie Barstow. "Cat?"

"Sarah." She smiled and shook Sarah's outstretched hand. "It is good to finally meet you. I met your father at a conference back when I was writing my thesis and he did nothing but rave about what you were doing."

"I've read a few of your papers and I have to say the honor is mine. Thank you for coming. I have to say I was a little surprised to see your name come up in connection with the foundation. I didn't think there was anyone still running it."

"Oh, I don't run it. Devon and my mother were very close and, before he passed, he purposely divided the shares into four equal pieces so there was always someone who would continue Wilton Knight's vision. When Devon passed, his 25% went to my mother and when she passed, her share passed to me hence how I now have a 50% stake. My guess is your father had Michael Knight sign over his 25% share so he was able to pass you 50%. Smart parents we had, huh?" She laughed. "So, now that there is no longer 3000 miles and a phone line between us, care to answer my question? Is KITT still around?"

"A newer version." There was something about the other woman in the limo that Sarah trusted. Even the lawyer handling the foundation had said that Dr. Barstow was not a threat, rather an ally, and Sarah believed that now that she'd met her. Telling her about KITT suddenly didn't seem so risky.

Cat looked in awe at the Ford Mustang. It was a work of art, able to resemble the regular showroom model even though it was really just a shell with all of the advanced engineering underneath the skin. Her mother would have been proud. "Oh my God. KITT you are beautiful." She went to touch the chassis, but pulled away. "KITT, would you mind if I touched you?"

"Not at all, Doctor." The smooth baritone voice responded from the car. "Sarah told me you were coming. I have to say, it is an honor to meet you."

"The honor is truly mine." Running her hand from the right rear quarter panel, up the rear post, and then along the roof to the front of the car, Cat shook her head. "A work of art. He looks and feels like a real car, but you were telling me it's a nanoskin. Am I correct, Sarah?"

"That is correct, Doctor." KITT responded.

"My apologies, KITT. Please, call me Cat, everyone does. I would love to look under your hood, but I will not presume to be so forward and bold on our first meeting."

"I would not mind, Cat."

"Thank you, KITT. I would love to, but I do believe that Sarah and I need to have a chat first. I promise, I will take you up on that offer before the end of today." Sarah escorted her to a futuristic office on the upper floor of the SSC and, as soon as the door was closed, Cat couldn't contain herself. "I'm not signing. That machine down there on the floor is just too amazing."

"Cat, the only way that KITT goes back into service is if FLAG is reestablished."

"I know. I'm not saying that I won't consent to FLAG being reestablished. I'm saying you have yourself your new mechanic."

"We can't afford to pay you what you command." Sarah was in shock.

"I didn't hear me mention salary. I'll work for room and board. You can keep your paycheck and I'll take the tax deduction as a charitable donation. I just want the opportunity to work with KITT."

"What about MIT?"

"My TA can finish this semester and then I'll take a sabbatical. Imagine the papers I could write about just his de-classified mechanics. Don't worry about MIT. It'll still be the same institution whether I'm there or not." Cat crossed her legs. "Sarah, this isn't up for negotiation. Either this comes to be or FLAG doesn't exist."

"Then I don't really have a choice, but I just want to make sure that you aren't going to leave after a few months when you become bored."

"Trust me, Sarah. MIT is boring, not KITT."

Two hours later, Cat couldn't wipe the grin from her face as she poured over KITT's belts and bolts. Life was exciting again. Things were new. "How's that, KITT?" She questioned after finishing a full tune-up, replacing most everything that even looked worn.

"I feel good."

"Good." She smiled, pulled off her gloves, and kissed his roof. "Thank you for allowing me to work on you and when you and Mike get back, I promise to give you the best detailing job you've ever had."

"Careful. That might just be construed as sexual harassment." Mike smirked as he walked up. "Michael Knight." Her eyes questioned him as they shook hands. "He was my father."

"I didn't think you looked old enough to be the man my mother used to talk about. I'm Cat. I'll be KITT's new mechanic."

"You are much too beautiful to be a mechanic."

"You are much too intelligent to think I'd fall for a god awful line like that." She laughed. "But, I'll give you an A for effort."

"Thanks, Professor." He winked. "We'll see you later."

"Not a good idea to be flirting with the boss' man, New Girl." Zoë said with obvious distain. Who was this woman to come in and start working with KITT? Sarah had said something about her being Bonnie Barstow's daughter, like that meant anything. Bonnie may have worked on the original KITT, but that was then and the current inclination of KITT was much more sophisticated.

"My apologies. Thank you for telling me, Zoë. I'll be more careful from now on." Cat knew there would be hostility. She was an outsider coming into a group that had become a family through major trials and upheavals. Zoë's dislike was not something she was going to concern herself with. She never really concerned herself with others' opinions of her. Life was too short to try to attain something that was unattainable. Abraham Lincoln was right, one could never please all of the people all of the time.

Billy followed the stunning leggy brunette into the hallway before lightly touching her shoulder. "Dr. Barstow?"

"Cat." She corrected the lanky man who was about her age.

"Cat." He smiled. "I just wanted you to know that not all of us feel the way Zoë does. I'm actually glad to have you here and I think KITT is too."

"Thank you, Billy, but I know where Zoë is coming from and she is entitled to her opinion. If her opinion of me changes, then fine, but if it doesn't, then that is fine too. You are really sweet to worry about me, though." She smiled and touched his arm before entering her pod.


	2. Chapter 2

"Cat, what are you doing awake?" KITT questioned as Cat walked into the main room at two in the morning.

She opened the driver's side door and stepped in. "I couldn't sleep. Too excited I guess. Plus, I had this schematic in my head and had to come out to discuss it with you. I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"Not at all."

"Great." Opening her notebook, she smiled. This had been what she needed. There were ideas flowing as though it were her first year at MIT again. Engineering was exciting again and KITT seemed to be receptive to her ideas.

Billy began turning all the lights on at six in the morning, his usual time, but they shut off immediately after. "KITT, I haven't had coffee yet. Please don't start this."

"I'm afraid that if you put the lights on you will be waking Cat."

"What cat?"

"Not what, Billy. Who. Dr. Barstow is asleep in my front seat. She just fell asleep about two hours ago."

"You can turn the lights on, KITT. I'll wake her up." Opening the driver's side door, Billy placed a tenuous hand on her soft exposed shoulder. Clothed in a sleeveless cotton t-shirt and men's cotton pajama pants, her long auburn hair splayed out on the headrest, and a peaceful look on her sweet face, Cat looked like an angel to him. Watching her sleep, no one would have ever guessed how intelligent, funny, and caring she was. "Dr. Barstow?" She sighed. "Cat?" She began stirring and he pulled away. "I'm sorry to disturb you. Um, it's morning, well, um, six in the morning," he stammered.

"Next time, Billy," she ran her hands over her face, "be more sure of yourself. Just slap me and tell me to get my butt out of the rack." Smiling, she rolled out of the car onto her feet. "You're doing what you have to do, don't apologize."

"I'll try to remember that." He forced a smile and turned away before she could see him blush.

Two weeks later, Cat was still smiling as she began putting the final shine on KITT's outer shell. It was her usual Friday afternoon ritual, provided Mike had him back in time. It was something she'd always found relaxing and she usually had company in the form of Mike or Billy, which just made it more enjoyable. She'd become one of the boys, as usual.

"Tell me, Doctor Rebecca Barstow, how did you get the nickname of 'Cat'?" Mike asked with a smile as he leaned against his car.

"Oh, that is a really long story and we aren't nearly drunk enough for it to be entertaining." She winked at him and continued her polishing.

"Then, after this, we are going to get into KITT and go grab a beer. There's always a designated driver around when we have KITT. Isn't that right, Buddy?"

"I am quite capable of driving even when you are sober, Michael."

Cat laughed. "He's trying to tell me that he doesn't take no for an answer and he's going to get me liquored up until I tell him what he wants to know, KITT."

"Smart girl. So, what do you say?"

"I say KITT is clean for the time being, I am going to take a nice long shower, and I don't think you have enough money in your wallet to get me drunk enough to tell you, but I'm game to see if you've got it in you." She winked again and threw the rag at him.

Twenty minutes later, the garage door opened and Mike admired a brand new Ford Mustang Shelby GT 500 convertible in a deep purple color and green interior. "Nice ride! Guess that means you won't be drinking."

"Billy can drive a stick, right?" She looked over at the brown-haired man who was just walking into the old airplane hanger.

Billy loved that she always invited him whenever everyone went out, even if it was to make sure that no one thought she was flirting with Mike, which she did so subtly he wasn't sure if Mike even noticed. She was classy, intelligent, beautiful, and had a great sense of humor. "Not really."

"Oh, then you are most certainly riding with The Joker. We're going to remedy that right now."

One pitcher into their impromptu celebration, which included Sarah and Zoë as well as Billy, Mike asked the question that had led them there. "OK, Dr. Barstow. Time to spill it."

"Nope." She leaned back in her chair with a smirk. "I'm not quite drunk enough."

"Enquiring minds want to know, Cat. You can trust us." Billy smiled over at her and watched her sigh. "We don't bite."

"Well, he might not." Mike quipped and enjoyed her laugh. "Why are you called Cat?"

"Oh, all right, but you are buying the next round."

"Deal. Now, spill."

"Fine. I was home-schooled most childhood, so I never had a normal school experience and completed two grades a year, no summer vacations or snow days, until I entered college at the ripe old age of fourteen. To put it mildly, I was rather ill equipped socially to handle a dorm environment. I know this will come as a shock, but I was a bit of a dork." She laughed as everyone else did. "I managed only because I joined every study group I could. In one of the engineering study groups, there was this guy who I always went one two in class rank. About halfway through the first semester, whenever I would say something a little off the wall, he would tell me 'pipe down, Crazy Ass Teenager,' and the name stuck, becoming Cat, and changing from 'Crazy Ass Teenager' to 'Crazy Alternative Thinker'. So, there you have it. Why I am called 'Cat'." She sipped her beer. "I told you it wasn't very entertaining."

"That guy was a jerk." Sarah rolled her eyes.

Cat laughed. "Not really. He was just as socially awkward as I was. Four years and two masters' degrees later, we were married."

"You're married?" Billy almost choked on his beer.

"Widowed. Cancer took him on our fifth wedding anniversary." She swallowed the emotions that were rising up along with her alcohol and forced herself to laugh, albeit a nervous one. "Well, if that wasn't a buzzkill, I don't know what is. Someone, please, save me here."

"How many degrees do you have?" Billy fought the urge to reach out and take her hand. Her beautiful blue eyes had turned dark and sad and it broke his heart.

She laughed and shook her head, the cobwebs clearing. "When I asked someone to save me, I meant to change the subject, not to continue the game of twenty questions." Her smile was genuine again. "Though, since you asked, Billy, I'll answer. I have a master's in computer science, a master's in civil engineering, and two PhDs. One in mechanical engineering and one in electrical engineering."

Sarah laughed. "And you choose to spend your time working on KITT? Talk about overqualified."

"Not really. KITT is a highly sophisticated being. I wouldn't trust him to my corner garage."

"You've got a point there." She laughed again.

Walking out to the parking lot of the bar three hours later, Cat began laughing when she dropped her car keys on the pavement and they landed with the Joker emblem face up. Mike reached down and picked them up before she could. "I'll take these, thank you very much."

"No, I'm good. I just need a few minutes." Cat slurred and reached out for his hand, falling well short, and laughing again. "I guess I'm not. OK, I'll drive KITT home." She started laughing again and heading for the purple Mustang.

"Wrong one, Cat." Mike took her by the hips and turned her towards his car.

"Oh," she put up her finger, and managed to stop laughing long enough to speak, "the reason she's called 'The Joker', Mike, other than the paint job, is he's got a rather sophisticated alarm system." Pushing herself off of KITT, she motioned for him to unlock the door. She fell into the driver's seat and placed her hand on the touch screen in the center of the dashboard. "You are all set. Just don't close the driver's door until you start the engine."

"OK." He helped her up and poured her into the passenger seat of his car with a smirk. "Just do me a favor, Cat. Don't puke."

"Yes, I would prefer if you did not regurgitate all over my cabin." KITT answered. "It has happened before and it was not pleasant."

"I have a cast iron stomach when it comes to booze, KITT. Don't worry."

Halfway back to the SSC, Billy looked over at the beautiful woman in the passenger seat. "Are you OK?"

"I will be once the world stops spinning."

"I believe the earth is unable to do that and if it did,"

"KITT, it's a figure of speech meaning I am experiencing vertigo because I am sobering up." Cat interrupted the car in a gruff tone. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so harsh."

"I am the one who is sorry. Mike is trying to teach me how to be less literal."

"We'll have to update your database so you'll have a shorter learning curve."

"I could help you with that, if you'd like." Billy jumped in.

"Yeah, I'd really like that. Two heads are better than one." She smiled over at him. "I have a system maintenance check to do tomorrow morning, but I'm free for lunch."

"Great. Then it's a date." He smiled, but suddenly realized what he had said. "Well, an appointment, not really a date in the sense,"

She touched his hand. "It's a date."


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning seemed to drag and Billy found himself tapping into the SSC's security cameras so he could watch Cat reviewing KITT's maintenance reports. It wasn't exciting, at least to her, since she kept her head resting on her hand and went through a half a pot of coffee, but just seeing her made his morning. Her long auburn hair was pulled back into a clip, but there were pieces that kept falling into her face and he watched her tuck them behind her ear. Given that she was doing paperwork, she hadn't put on a stitch of makeup, but it didn't matter. Her flawless porcelain skin still glowed. She was so beautiful.

"You're going to get arrested for stalking soon." Zoë chirped when she caught Billy staring at Cat again.

"I am not stalking."

"You're stalking."

"I am not stalking." His voice rose just slightly and he got back to work.

Work was something that had been fun for the past two weeks, but as she studied the report she'd run from KITT's systems, it ceased being fun. "Billy, can I borrow your terminal for a moment?" After close to an hour of being unable to decipher the file, she walked out into the main room of the SSC, unaware of the conversation she was interrupting.

"Um, yeah, I guess. What's wrong?"

"I don't know yet." Sitting down, she began brought up a secure log on. "KITT, it's just me going in through your back door."

"Oh, that is not how my man rolls, Cat." Mike quipped.

"Not my favorite position either, but it's purely clinical. I am a doctor." She quipped back as she began scanning through the code. "Here's my question," using the surface computer, she threw what she was looking at onto the plasma, "what is this file?"

"It appears to be missing sections of my memory." KITT answered.

"What is it doing locked up in a partitioned sector?"

"It might have gotten written to the wrong place after the reboot after KARR." Billy slid next to her and began working.

"So this could be part of his AI?"

"It could be, but it also could just be bad data."

"It's not bad data. It appears to be two files all mangled up together. I can't separate them and I can't decipher them. If it's part of the AI, though, it's a little out of my expertise."

"I didn't think there was anything you couldn't do with KITT." Mike commented with a smile and watched Cat laugh.

"While I thank you for the compliment, I'm afraid that AI is still a little advanced for me. I'm more of a grease monkey."

"You are much too beautiful to be a grease monkey."

She laughed again. "And you've known me long enough to know I'd never fall for such a lame ass line, but thank you for the compliment, Mike."

"Got it." Billy sat back with a smile and hit play, having tuned out the conversation around him.

Cat shook her head. "This is some sort of video game."

"It must be leftover from when KITT was deactivated."

"Well, I don't want to remove it remotely just in case something goes wrong. KITT, are you OK if I leave this until you and Mike return?"

"It doesn't bother me."

"Well, it bothers me, but we'll take care of it as soon as you're home." She smiled. "Please, Mike, don't try to access this file to get pointers or anything."

"Cat, I'm hurt." He feigned offense, but he smiled. "I'll leave it alone. I don't need pointers from a fourteen year old to whip Billy's ass."

"Oh," Billy looked up from his computer screen, "it's on Knight. I will mop the floor with you."

"Boys and their yardsticks." Cat laughed and shook her head as she stood up. "Just bring him back in one piece. The same thing goes for you, KITT."

"Ha ha. Funny, Doc." Mike mocked as they shared a laugh.

Zoë smacked Billy's arm as Cat walked out of the main room. "What?"

"What was that for, Zoë?" Mike questioned, but then he grinned. "Wait? You have a thing for Cat?"

"I do not have a thing for her."

Zoë shook her head. "He's been stalking her all morning because they have a lunch date after she's done with KITT's maintenance."

"Here's what you do, Billy. You go in there now and begin massaging her shoulders. She's got to be tight from staring at those reports all morning. The woman was up before I was. So, you go in there, you begin to lightly rub her shoulders and her neck, and you let the conversation build from there. A woman loves to be pampered."

"For once, Mike," Sarah walked in with a smile, "you have it right. Billy, go in there and be confident. She's not going to bite."

"Since when did my personal life become a topic for discussion?" Billy fought the blush that was rising up in his cheeks with anger. "We're friends. That's all. I don't have a thing for her. I don't stand a chance with a woman like that." He pushed away from the desk and stormed out of the room.

"That went well." Zoë rolled her eyes.

The next afternoon, Mike arrived back at the SSC after the mission and found Cat where he always found her on a Sunday afternoon, underneath the hood of The Joker. It had taken him a bit to get used to a woman who found it relaxing to tweak an engine to obtain maximum horsepower, but now it was as natural as carrying on a conversation with a car. "What's up, Doc?"

"Funny, Mike." Cat stood up with a smile and pulled off her latex gloves. "Is KITT in one piece?"

"Sarah's checking him out right now, but I think he'll live to fight another day." He smiled and leaned against the car. "No, I just came out to talk with you."

"That doesn't sound good."

"No, it's fine. It's about Billy."

"About his crush that he won't admit?" She laughed. "Get in the car. I want to test these upgrades and maybe this conversation is best done over coffee." Stripping out of her coveralls, she watched Mike's smile turn a tad lecherous and she shook her head. "I have to thank you and Billy. I'd forgotten that I was an anatomically correct woman before I came here. Guess being the new girl has its advantages."

"Welcome to the Jungle." The car spoke with a raspy voice and ended with a sinister laugh.

"Joker, this is Michael Knight. You can play nice." Cat put her hand on the dashboard touch screen. "Sorry, I didn't think to shut her down."

"Or to tell me you were bringing a friend, Becky." The car's voice changed to something that resembled her mother's. "Good to meet you, Michael Knight. I am The Joker. I must say your physical characteristics are nothing like what I expected."

"You're thinking of his father, Joker." Cat depressed the clutch and spun the key, the V8 roaring to life. "That sounds much better."

"Zero to sixty in under three seconds?" Mike couldn't contain his grin. "Nice."

"Thank you, but what is really impressive is she can get forty miles to the gallon on the highway."

"Because you won't let me fire all the cylinders." This time the car's voice whined.

"You don't have a single voice, do you, Joker?" He laughed.

"That's part of my charm, Honey." It said with a southern drawl.

Mike laughed again. "Where did you get the idea for this, Cat?"

"When my mother died, I found the blueprints for the Knight Industries Two Thousand and started building The Joker as a way to stay close to her. The voice modulation, though, came about because I couldn't decide on one main voice to fit her personality."

"You did a fantastic job."

"Thank you." She smiled and pulled into the parking lot of a local diner. "Want to flip for who buys?"

"You drove. I'll buy." He smiled and put his arm around her shoulder as they walked in. It surprised him how fast they became close. When she'd first arrived, he'd thought she was just a pretty face, but he'd soon found just how much depth there was to her and how easy it was to talk to her. He'd found himself telling her things he'd never told anyone, including Sarah. There was just a connection they had, so he knew it would have to be him to talk to her about Billy. "Cat, he's got it bad for you, but he's afraid that you're going to turn him down."

"How can I turn him down if he doesn't ask?"

"The man is petrified of rejection. Not to mention, he thinks you're out of his league."

She shook her head with a laugh. "Honey, I'm a super geek gearhead. I'm not out of anyone's league."

"You're confident, beautiful, intelligent, and have a great sense of humor. I can see why he might be intimidated." Mike winked. "If I didn't know you so well, I'd be intimidated."

"You mean to tell me that if you were interested, you wouldn't take a shot?"

"Who says my restraint means I'm uninterested? I could just be backing off because a friend asked me to."

She laughed. "Bros before hoes?"

"I guess you could say it's something like that. We're also way too close to make anything work. If we were to get together and it ended badly, you have way too much ammunition against me."

"I'm not like that, but I see your point." Cat sipped her coffee. "So, what do you think I should do about Billy?"

"Make the first move."

"What do you think I've been doing for the past few weeks?" She laughed again. "I guess I'm going to have to be a little more obvious."

"And stop flirting with me."

Her coffee caught in her throat and she began coughing. "I'm sorry. Who's flirting with whom?" His answer was a simple grin and raise of his eyebrows.

Two months later, Billy walked into the main room of the SSC and found Cat leaning against KITT trying to catch her breath. "You just come back from a run?" Placing his hand on her shoulder, he watched her smile, but it never reached her blue eyes. "Cat, what's wrong?"

"I think I'm coming down with the flu. That's all. Nothing to be concerned about, but you are sweet to ask. I think I'm going to lie down for a few minutes. KITT is tuned up and ready to roll whenever Mike is ready."

There was a pale, gray look to her skin as she walked out of the room and he couldn't prove it, but he was almost sure she'd gotten even skinnier than when she first arrived. Something in his gut told him something was off, but he couldn't put his finger on exactly what.

Cat knew exactly what it was. The symptoms were undeniable and familiar. Billy had been right about her weight loss, and then there was the shortness of breath, and the lack of energy. When the fever and unexplained bruises were thrown in it could only mean one thing and she went back to her pod to make a phone call.

The note was slipped under his pod door sometime in the middle of the night a week later and Billy re-read it six times just to make sure it said what he thought it said. The woman he had fallen in love with was headed away in the dead of night with just a simple, 'I'll be back. Don't worry.'

Exhaust from the air traffic as well as all the other transportation hung in the air as a powerful overlay to the heavy and sweet summer air that filled Cat's nose when she stepped outside the arrivals terminal of Logan Airport and hailed a taxi. The last place on earth she wanted to be was back in Boston, but the message she had received the previous night had warranted a jaunt back east. "Scott, it's Becky. I just landed. I'm headed to my hotel first then I'll be over to see you." She said to the familiar voicemail when the cab pulled away from the curb.

"You are still my most beautiful patient." The man in the white coat walked into his office and hugged the stunning brunette. "The California sun has done you well."

"And I'd really like to get back to that sun, Scott. How about you tell me what those test results you're holding in your hand say and you can go back to using your tired lines on the patients who haven't heard them before?" Cat smirked.

"The blood tests are, as I said on the phone, inconclusive. I'd really like to,"

"Do a bone marrow test? Yeah, that's what I was afraid you wanted. The leukemia is back, isn't it?" Her smile was gone and she sighed.

"Becky, we don't know that. All I know is that your counts are out of whack and I want to run another series of blood tests before we resort to a bone marrow test. OK? This really could turn out to be nothing. You have to have a little optimism and faith."

"After the last time, I'm all out."


End file.
